Elections supervisor to address commission Tuesday

Published: Monday, December 2, 2013 at 5:14 p.m.

Last Modified: Monday, December 2, 2013 at 5:14 p.m.

OCALA -- Both a traditional or mail-in special election county-wide is possible, but whether the Marion County Commissioners will approve placing a half-cent sales tax to build a stadium for the New York Yankees Class A farm team on a referendum for voters to decide in March is a subject the commission will wrestle with Tuesday.

Commissioner Kathy Bryant’s concern about the county footing $175,000 of the $350,000 cost to run a special election was alleviated last week when the Yankees agreed to pick up the county’s tab. The city of Ocala is still on the hook for the remaining $175,000.

“I think that the commission is thankful that the Yankees are putting some skin in the game and were willing to step up and pay for that half of the election,” Commission Chairman Carl Zalak said Monday.

“I think if the mail-in ballot really does provide what I am thinking is an opportunity for every voter to vote and the Yankees step up, it’s certainly looking more positive than it was at the workshop,” he added about the commission’s workshop meeting held Nov. 21.

But he said that, without knowing what the other four commissioners are thinking, he is not certain where the commission as a whole stands.

County Commissioner David Moore said Monday that he still had some questions. For one thing, as a city resident, he was not in favor of city taxpayers having to foot half the bill for the special election either.

“I prefer it to be done by private enterprise,” Moore said.

That was his sentiment about the $60 million needed for the stadium, land and infrastructure as well, although he said he realized that likely would not happen.

Moore said he had questions about voter participation as well as the integrity of mail-in elections, which is something the commissioners seemed to favor by consensus at the November workshop.

“There are cases of voter fraud for mail-in ballots,” Moore said.

He said in one 2006 election someone voted in the place of a man who was deceased.

“Maybe there’s a way to guarantee voting integrity,” Moore said.

Another of Moore’s concerns is voter participation. He said in city elections, which are held in odd years, voter participation is “10 percent at best.”

Moore said that at the workshop meeting Landis Curry spoke about polling that was done and the results showed that for the ballot to pass, those over the age of 65 would need to stay away from the polls.

“I want to make sure we have fair voter participation,” Moore said. “On something that’s affecting the entire county, I would like to have as many people in the county come out and vote.”

Supervisor of Elections Wesley Wilcox will be giving a presentation to the commission Tuesday about the mail-in ballots.

Wilcox said both types of elections -- traditional at the polls or all-mail -- are possible. He would have to approve a mail-in ballot. To his knowledge, there has never been an all-mail ballot in Marion County, although they have been conducted throughout the state.

He said the reason all-mail elections are not conducted more often is because they can be used solely for elections that contain referendum questions only, which is true in this instance. They may not be used for elections that involve selecting candidates.

“From an administrative standpoint, I don’t really have a preference,” Wilcox said. “My viewpoint is I can conduct a traditional election or all-mail election. Either one would be as successful as the other one.”

But there is a time line to be met.

“With an all-mail election, the time line is vastly different than we see from a traditional election. Everything becomes abbreviated,” Wilcox said.

So, if there is to be an election on March 18, 2014, the County Commission would have to submit its request to Wilcox 91 days before the election, which is Dec. 17. That means, the commission would have to have a final vote by Dec. 17, which is possible.

For absentee voters in traditional elections, Wilcox can send out the ballots 35 days before the election. In an all-mail election, the ballot cannot be mailed until 20 days before the election.

“It’s all manageable,” Wilcox said. “It’s just logistics.”

He said about 25 to 30 percent of the voters in Marion County already are voting by mail. An all-mail election would be different for the other two-thirds.

“If the county makes a determination to go that direction, I think it will end up being virtually the same cost,” Wilcox said about the all-mail election versus a traditional election.

<p>OCALA -- Both a traditional or mail-in special election county-wide is possible, but whether the Marion County Commissioners will approve placing a half-cent sales tax to build a stadium for the New York Yankees Class A farm team on a referendum for voters to decide in March is a subject the commission will wrestle with Tuesday.</p><p>Commissioner Kathy Bryant's concern about the county footing $175,000 of the $350,000 cost to run a special election was alleviated last week when the Yankees agreed to pick up the county's tab. The city of Ocala is still on the hook for the remaining $175,000.</p><p>“I think that the commission is thankful that the Yankees are putting some skin in the game and were willing to step up and pay for that half of the election,” Commission Chairman Carl Zalak said Monday.</p><p>“I think if the mail-in ballot really does provide what I am thinking is an opportunity for every voter to vote and the Yankees step up, it's certainly looking more positive than it was at the workshop,” he added about the commission's workshop meeting held Nov. 21.</p><p>But he said that, without knowing what the other four commissioners are thinking, he is not certain where the commission as a whole stands.</p><p>County Commissioner David Moore said Monday that he still had some questions. For one thing, as a city resident, he was not in favor of city taxpayers having to foot half the bill for the special election either.</p><p>“I prefer it to be done by private enterprise,” Moore said.</p><p>That was his sentiment about the $60 million needed for the stadium, land and infrastructure as well, although he said he realized that likely would not happen.</p><p>Moore said he had questions about voter participation as well as the integrity of mail-in elections, which is something the commissioners seemed to favor by consensus at the November workshop.</p><p>“There are cases of voter fraud for mail-in ballots,” Moore said.</p><p>He said in one 2006 election someone voted in the place of a man who was deceased.</p><p>“Maybe there's a way to guarantee voting integrity,” Moore said.</p><p>Another of Moore's concerns is voter participation. He said in city elections, which are held in odd years, voter participation is “10 percent at best.”</p><p>Moore said that at the workshop meeting Landis Curry spoke about polling that was done and the results showed that for the ballot to pass, those over the age of 65 would need to stay away from the polls.</p><p>“I want to make sure we have fair voter participation,” Moore said. “On something that's affecting the entire county, I would like to have as many people in the county come out and vote.”</p><p>Supervisor of Elections Wesley Wilcox will be giving a presentation to the commission Tuesday about the mail-in ballots.</p><p>“A lot will hinge on Wesley Wilcox's answers to questions,” Moore said. “That will influence my decision.”</p><p>Attempts to contact Commissioners Earl Arnett, Kathy Bryant and Stan McClain for comment Monday were unsuccessful.</p><p>Wilcox said both types of elections -- traditional at the polls or all-mail -- are possible. He would have to approve a mail-in ballot. To his knowledge, there has never been an all-mail ballot in Marion County, although they have been conducted throughout the state.</p><p>He said the reason all-mail elections are not conducted more often is because they can be used solely for elections that contain referendum questions only, which is true in this instance. They may not be used for elections that involve selecting candidates.</p><p>“From an administrative standpoint, I don't really have a preference,” Wilcox said. “My viewpoint is I can conduct a traditional election or all-mail election. Either one would be as successful as the other one.”</p><p>But there is a time line to be met.</p><p>“With an all-mail election, the time line is vastly different than we see from a traditional election. Everything becomes abbreviated,” Wilcox said.</p><p>So, if there is to be an election on March 18, 2014, the County Commission would have to submit its request to Wilcox 91 days before the election, which is Dec. 17. That means, the commission would have to have a final vote by Dec. 17, which is possible.</p><p>For absentee voters in traditional elections, Wilcox can send out the ballots 35 days before the election. In an all-mail election, the ballot cannot be mailed until 20 days before the election.</p><p>“It's all manageable,” Wilcox said. “It's just logistics.”</p><p>He said about 25 to 30 percent of the voters in Marion County already are voting by mail. An all-mail election would be different for the other two-thirds.</p><p>“If the county makes a determination to go that direction, I think it will end up being virtually the same cost,” Wilcox said about the all-mail election versus a traditional election.</p><p>The County Commission meeting begins at 9 a.m. Tuesday in commission chambers at the McPherson Governmental Complex, 601 SE 25th Ave., Ocala.</p><p><i>Contact Susan Latham Carr at 352-867-4156 or susan.carr@starbanner.com.</i></p>